Dominique Franks is intent on moving up

INDIANAPOLIS — Bob Stoops and the NFL advised Dom Franks to stay in school. But the Oklahoma cornerback is ready to go pro.

"I’m gonna be a great player for you wherever I go,” Franks said Sunday at the NFL Combine, using the same matter-of-fact tone he used, win or lose, as a Sooner.

Dominique Franks got a third-round grade from the NFL College Advisory Committee. Photo by Chris Landsberger, The Oklahoman Archive

"This is what I always wanted to do as a kid, and I felt like I had a chance to become an NFL football player, so I was just like, ‘Well, you’re not guaranteed tomorrow, so you might as well just throw your name in and see what happens.’”

Stoops advised Franks to stay, and the NFL College Advisory Committee gave Franks a third-round grade. But Franks hopes to move up.

"Every coach is gonna tell their kid to come back to school,” Franks said of Stoops. "But he’s a great coach. He told me, ‘Hey, whenever you make your decision, I’m gonna be behind you, whether you come back or you leave. You have our blessings.’ So he’s given me a lot of support.”

So has quarterback Sam Bradford. Franks said practicing against — and picking the brain of — the 2008 Heisman Trophy winner has paid off.